1990 Toyota 4Runner review from North America

Bad valve in #5 cylinder.

Bent frame from minor undocumented incident.

Bad steering box.

Leaking transfer case.

Leaking transmission.

Leaking oil pan.

Leaking power steering unit.

Leaking master cylinder.

Broken flexible high-pressure fuel line.

Bad fuel injectors.

Leaking, noisy manifold.

Burns gallons of oil.

Suspension in general is shot.

Vents always blow dust into the cab, even when all fans are off.

Rear power window failed.

Valve cover gaskets shot for the second time since I owned it.

Pitman arm bolt sheared off.

Starter failed twice.

PS pulley ate through two batteries before I finally fixed the defective bracket.

Alternator puts out less than 14 volts.

Power antenna stopped working.

Rear window defrost doesn't work.

Power locks work only intermittently.

Ignition cylinder replaced.

Power mirrors never worked during the time I had it.

Spare tire storage winch/mechanism failed.

Transmission slips from park into reverse on its own sometimes.

Everyone says how great these 4runners are, they can run forever, blah blah blah. Well, this one is little more than a pile of crap. Paid under book value for it and has cost me over $3,300 before I finally realized it will never run right again.

I can't even in good conscience sell it, as the steering is so unpredictable that someone other than me, who is used to it, will get hurt or killed. It's all over the road.

It can't climb hills, and can't go faster than 70 mph or so. It gets only 11 miles to the gallon (all highway) because of the dying cylinder. So yeah, everyone keep praising the Japanese for their wonderful overpriced 4runners, my previous vehicle, an AMERICAN truck (Dodge) ran fine, but I had to listen to all the crap about how great the Toyota is.

Besides my first wife, that Toyota is the worst mistake of my life. Never again.